More from this issue:

1. Study: Unionized Police? Increased Misconduct, by Derek Gilna
2. ‘Serious Bodily Harm’ Does Not Include Animals, Massachusetts Supreme Court Holds, by Dale Chappell
3. Georgia Supreme Court Vacates Convictions and Sentences Due to Merger Errors, by Matthew Clarke
4. Rhode Island High Court Abolishes Shatney in Initial Application for Postconviction Relief by Prisoners Serving Life Without Parole, by Matthew Clarke
5. North Dakota Supreme Court Announces Interpretation of Restitution Statutes, by Christopher Zoukis
6. Fifth Circuit: 96-Day Pretrial Detention Without Appearance Before Judge or Chance to Post Bail Violates Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Rights, by Matthew Clarke
7. Fifth Circuit Holds Prisoner May Sign and Deliver Habeas-Related Motion on Behalf of Fellow Prisoner Under Prison Mailbox Rule, by Dale Chappell
8. Federal Judge Excludes Evidence After FBI Lies on Search Warrant Affidavit, Geek Squad on FBI payroll, by Matthew Clarke
9. ‘Black Identity Extremists’ Added to FBI List of Domestic Terrorists, by Christopher Zoukis
10. The G-Men are Coming: Local Cops Partner with Federal Authorities to Deport Undocumented Immigrants, by Christopher Zoukis
11. U.S. Supreme Court: Death Penalty Case Involving Racist Juror Requires Further Consideration, by Christopher Zoukis
12. Ohio Supreme Court Holds State Cannot Prove ‘Bulk Amount’ of Fentanyl Under Statute, by Dale Chappell
13. Colorado Supreme Court: Conviction of Drunk Motorist for Attempted Reckless Manslaughter and Attempted Second Degree Assault Requires Risk to Discernable Person, Not Merely Public At-Large, by Christopher Zoukis
14. U.S. Supreme Court Resolves Split Among Circuit Courts of Appeals on Tax Code § 7212(a), by Richard Resch
15. Ninth Circuit Reverses Drug Smuggling Conviction for Improper Exclusion of Evidence of Third-Party Culpability, by Christopher Zoukis
16. Arizona Supreme Court: Trial Court Must Tell Jury Defendant Ineligible for Parole in Death Penalty Phase, by Dale Chappell
17. Iowa Supreme Court Rules District Courts Have Authority to Hear Postconviction Relief Actions Involving Deprivation of Liberty or Property Interest, by David Reutter
18. Innocence be Damned: Prosecutors Who Disregard Justice in Push to Win at Any Cost, by Dale Chappell
19. Cautionary Tale: Visible Fingertips in Cellphone Pictures Can Get You Arrested, by Steve Horn
20. D.C. Circuit Vacates Sentence Because Government Breached Plea Agreement by Providing Defendant’s Confidential Statements to Sentencing Court, by Dale Chappell
21. Colorado Supreme Court Limits Bottom End of Aggravated Sentencing Statute for Habitual Sex Offenders, by Christopher Zoukis
22. New Report: 60 Percent of Exonerations Stem from Official Misconduct, by Steve Horn
23. Washington High Court Issues New Rule Making Immigration Status Inadmissible, by Derek Gilna
24. ‘Shaken Baby Syndrome’ Diagnoses Discredited, Convictions Questioned, by Matthew Clarke
25. Captured: ‘Golden State Killer’ Wanted for 12 Murders and 50 Rapes Turns Out To Be Former Sacramento-Area Cop, by Derek Gilna
26. Louisiana: No Charges for Cops Who Shot Alton Sterling, Despite Body-Cam Evidence, by Monte McCoin
27. Coast to Coast, Sex Offender Residency Restrictions Waste Money, Create Havoc, by Sandy Rozek
28. ‘Broken Windows’ Policing Results in Police Lying About Unlawful Stops, by Matthew Clarke
29. Drug-Induced Homicide Laws Hurt Rather Than Help Opioid Overdose Crisis, by Dale Chappell
30. Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rules FBI Admission Microscopic Hair Analysis Wrong 90% of the Time is Newly Discovered Fact Allowing Untimely Post-Conviction Relief Petition, by Christopher Zoukis
31. Habeas Hints: Understanding and Satisfying the Strickland Test for IAC, by Kent A. Russell, Tara Hoveland
32. Book Review: California Habeas Handbook 2.0 by Kent A. Russell, by Christopher Zoukis
33. Victory: Virginia Supreme Court Delivers Blow to Police Use of License Plate Reader Technology to Track Drivers, Surveil Citizens, by The Rutherford Institute
34. U.S. Supreme Court Holds Residual Clause Definition of ‘Crime of Violence’ Unconstitutionally Vague Under Due Process Clause, by Dale Chappell
35. Vague Criminality and Mass Incarceration: Will Dimaya End the Insanity?, by Leah Litman
36. New York Times Investigation Spotlights NYPD Practice of ‘Testilying’, by Derek Gilna
37. News in Brief
38. Sex Offender Registries: Common Sense or Nonsense?, by Christopher Zoukis

More from Christopher Zoukis:

• The Contraband Wars Prison authorities target books and mail, miss the goods coming through the staff door, July 1, 2021
• Trump v. Biden on Criminal Justice, Oct. 1, 2020
• Coronavirus in Prison: The Cruel Reality, Aug. 1, 2020
• With Lives of Immigrant Detainees at Risk to COVID-19, Federal Judge Forces ICE’s Hand, July 1, 2020
• A Nation on the Brink, June 15, 2020
• Federal Court Slams Michigan Jail for Bungling COVID-19 Pandemic, Demands Names of Vulnerable Prisoners for Release, June 1, 2020
• Silence: The Bureau of Prisons’ Pathetic Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, June 1, 2020
• New York Judge Orders Release of 18 Rikers Island Detainees Due to COVID-19 Risk, June 1, 2020
• Coronavirus: A Nationwide Survey of the Push for Early Release as Pandemic Fears Grow, May 1, 2020
• California Three-Judge Court Denies Emergency Motion to Reduce Prison Population During Pandemic, May 1, 2020

More from these topics:

• Federal Habeas Quick Reference Guide for State Prisoners, Sept. 1, 2026. Retroactivity, Habeas Corpus, AEDPA, Actual Innocence/Claim of Innocence, Cause and Prejudice.
• Sixth Circuit Holds Kentucky Deficient-Counsel Belated-Appeal Procedure Tolls Federal Habeas One-Year Limitations Period, Sept. 1, 2026. Limitations, Habeas Corpus, AEDPA, Failure to Preserve Challenge, Tolling of Statutes of Limitations and Laches.
• Formally Available, Rarely Granted: A State Prisoner’s Guide to Federal Habeas Relief, Sept. 1, 2026. Administrative Exhaustion, Habeas Corpus, Bureau of Prisons Orders, Administrative Law/Remedies, Evidence - Integrity/Reliability of, Tolling of Statutes of Limitations and Laches, Federal Rules of Evidence, Statute of Limitations.
• Eleventh Circuit Holds § 2255 Motion Not “Second or Successive” After Intervening Amended Judgment Corrected Unlawful Sentences, Even as to Claims Concerning an Undisturbed Count, Aug. 1, 2026. Habeas Corpus, AEDPA, Effect of Vacatur.
• Eighth Circuit Dismisses Federal Prisoner’s Challenge to BOP Denying His Request for Expedited Transfer to Prerelease Custody, June 1, 2026. Release and Reentry, Habeas Corpus, First Step Act, Community Confinement/Home Detention, Credits.
• Sixth Circuit Announces State-Law Exceptions to Appeal Deadlines Preserve “Pending” Status Under AEDPA, Holding Belated-Appeal Procedures Toll Federal Habeas Limitations Period, April 1, 2026. Limitations, Habeas Corpus, AEDPA, Appealable Issues/Orders, Failure to Address/Advise Defendant.
• SCOTUS Sides with Federal Prisoner in Habeas Review Case, March 1, 2026. Habeas Corpus, AEDPA, Mandatory Minimum Sentence, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Predicate Acts/Offenses.
• SCOTUS Announces Federal Prisoners May Seek Certiorari Review of Authorization Denials Under § 2255(h) and Are Not Subject to § 2244(b)(1)’s Bar on Previously Presented Claims, Feb. 1, 2026. Habeas Corpus, AEDPA, Appealable Issues/Orders, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Authority and Jurisdiction.
• California Court of Appeal: Trial Courts Have Inherent Authority to Correct Unauthorized Sentences at Any Time Without Habeas Petition, Jan. 1, 2026. Habeas Corpus, Possession or Use of Firearms, Sentences - Authorized, Sentences - Corrections or Modifications of, Effect of Vacatur.
• First Circuit Announces Modification of Juvenile’s Life-­Without-­Parole Sentence to Parole-­Eligible Life Term Constitutes “New Judgment” Under AEDPA, Exempting Second-­in-­Time Habeas Petition From Gatekeeping Requirements, Jan. 1, 2026. Parole, Habeas Corpus, Life without Parole (LWOP), AEDPA, Juvenile Offenses/Offenders.